Le Marais, Ménilmontant & Belleville
France's National Archives and small museum are set in a stunning pair of hôtels particuliers (mansions) amid beautiful gardens. Dating from the early…
Must-see attractions in France
The Dordogne
North of the cathedral is this fabulous tangle of cobblestone streets lined with medieval houses. The best examples are along rue du Plantier, rue de la…
Nantes
Opened in 1860, this exquisitely landscaped park is among France's most interesting botanical gardens. Century-old magnolia and mulberry trees, Japanese…
Parc Naturel Régional des Volcans d'Auvergne
Le Mont-Dore's graceful 19th-century buildings grew from its centuries-old spa heritage, which long pre-dates its reputation as a ski hub. See the source…
Alsace
About 25km west of Obernai, off the D130, stands Natzweiler-Struthof, the only Nazi concentration camp on French territory. Today the sombre remains of…
Montmartre & Northern Paris
Housed in a sumptuous mansion modelled on the Petit Trianon at Versailles, this museum displays 18th-century furniture, wood panelling, tapestries,…
Paris
Place de la Madeleine is named after the 19th-century neoclassical church at its centre, the Église de la Madeleine. Constructed in the style of a massive…
Montmartre & Northern Paris
Buttes Chaumont is one of the city’s largest green spaces, with landscaped slopes hiding grottoes, waterfalls, a lake and even an island topped with a…
Besançon
This spiffy museum gives an engaging account of the life and works of Besançon's best-known literary son, Victor Hugo, famous for masterpieces such as Les…
Honfleur
The old harbour, with its bobbing pleasure boats, is Honfleur’s focal point. On the west side, quai Ste-Catherine is lined with tall, taper-thin houses –…
The Jura Mountains
The salty history of the Jura is well-explained in the town of Salins-les-Bains, which derives its very name from the salt trade. Step inside the Grande…
Arles
Named for Arles' semi-mythical first archbishop, this Romanesque-style church, built over a 5th-century basilica, was a cathedral until the bishopric…
Bordeaux
The evolution of Occidental art from the Renaissance to the mid-20th century is on view at Bordeaux’s Museum of Fine Arts, which occupies two wings of the…
Paris
On the western edge of Paris just beyond the 16e, the 845-hectare Bois de Boulogne owes its informal layout to Baron Haussmann, who was inspired by Hyde…
Montmartre & Northern Paris
To the southwest of Basilique de St-Denis is the Museum of Art and History, housed in a restored Carmelite convent founded in 1625 and later presided over…
Paris
The two curved, colonnaded wings of this building (built for the 1937 International Expo) and central terrace afford an exceptional panorama of the…
Bordeaux
Rub shoulders with bohemian Bordeaux at this ramshackle atelier (artist workshop) where Jean-François Buisson, one of several resident artists, welds…
Southern Corsica
The desolate and beautiful Cauria plateau, 15km south of Sartène, holds several intriguing prehistoric sites. To find them, take the D48 south then follow…
Auvergne
Creamy blue Fourme d'Ambert, recognisable by its tall, cylindrical shape, is one of the Auvergne's five Appellation d’Origine Protégée (AOP) cheeses. This…
Paris
Built between the 13th and 16th centuries in a mixture of Gothic and Renaissance styles and with similar dimensions and ground plans to those of Notre…
Paris
This magnificent botanical park is a highlight of the Bois de Vincennes. Natural landscaping, a Japanese bonsai pavilion, an azalea garden and several…
The Pyrenees
This townhouse is the birthplace of one of Napoléon’s favourite generals, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (nicknamed ‘Sergent belle-jambe’, on account of his…
Normandy
This museum commemorates the Dieppe Raid of 1942, in which a mostly Canadian force of over 6000 men, backed up by 300 ships and 800 aircraft, landed on…
Musée Escoffier de l’Art Culinaire
Côte d'Azur
Filling three floors of the childhood home of Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935), this charming museum celebrates the life of France's most legendary chef…
Parc Naturel Régional du Pilat
Lyon & the Rhône Valley
In the mood for a rural escape? Make a beeline for the Parc Naturel Régional du Pilat, which spills across 650 sq km between Lyon and St-Étienne. A haven…
Bordeaux
Exquisite decorative sculptures representing greed, lust and other terrible age-old vices adorn the striking Romanesque façade of this elegant church in…
Musée de Préhistoire Corse et d’Archéologie
Southern Corsica
This modern museum traces Corsica’s prehistory from its original fauna through the megalithic, Bronze Age and Roman eras. Much of it is rather dry, with…
Latin Quarter
The highlight of the Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle for kids is the Grande Galerie de l’Évolution, with imaginative exhibits on evolution and…
Fragonard’s Usine Historique & Musée du Parfum
Grasse
At the entrance to the old town, next to the Jardin des Plantes, this ochre-coloured mansion is where the Fragonard perfumery began in 1926 – though…
Paris
Designed by architect Carlos Ott, this concrete, glass and steel opera house is Paris' largest, with a 2745-seat main auditorium. During his presidency,…
Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaïsme
Le Marais, Ménilmontant & Belleville
Inside the Hôtel de St-Aignan, dating from 1650, this museum traces the evolution of Jewish communities from the Middle Ages to the present, including…
The Pyrenees
Eighteen kilometres south of Foix, near Tarascon-sur-Ariège, this excellent museum-park provides a useful primer on the area’s prehistoric past. The…
Poitiers
The celebrated western façade of this Romanesque church was exquisitely sculpted in soft gold stone between 1115 and 1130. Spot the temptation of Adam and…
Touraine
La Devinière, the prosperous farm where François Rabelais (1483 or 1494–1553) – doctor, Franciscan friar, theoretician, author and all-around Renaissance…
Lourdes
Lourdes’ imposing castle stands on a sheer hill just behind the town. There’s been a stronghold here since Roman times, but the present building combines…
Paris
The Tokyo Palace, created for the 1937 Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne (International Exposition of Art and…
Paris
Paris' largest, state-of-the-art zoo focuses on the conservation of species and habitats, with camouflaged vantage points (no peering through fences). Its…
Normandy
This new, highly informative and timely (for the 75th anniversary of D-Day) museum in the town of Falaise, 41km southeast of Caen, gets you under the skin…
Chambéry
With its four carved elephants, this 17.6m-high fountain looks like the model for an old Indian postage stamp. It was sculpted in 1838 in honour of…
Marseille
Visionary modernist architect Le Corbusier redefined urban living in 1952 with the completion of this vertical 337-apartment tower, popularly known as La…
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